Are all of Disney's movies Okay for all kids?

RATED: T

Disney never fails to create a near perfect movie for kids. The Lion King, Finding Nemo, Frozen, and Big Hero 6. But, what we sometimes forget is the large amount of content non-friendly to kids. Usually, ratings take care of that. They slap the warning sign (PG or PG-13) and everyone knows that there could be some slightly adult oriented content.

Now, I'm not condemning Disney and I'm not saying all they produce is adult content. However, some of their MPAA ratings are definitely not right. Again I'm not necessarily blaming them. It could have been the MPAA's fault too.

FYI: MPAA stands for motion picture association for America. There are five ratings the MPAA can put on a movie: G, PG, PG-13, R, and NC-17. I'm guessing most of you didn't even know there was an NC-17 rating. That's good, it shouldn't even have to be a rating. For some reason the world makes very messed movies that burst the R-rating's bubble. No one should ever see a movie over R.

While Frozen and Big Hero 6 were both rated PG, The Lion King and Finding Nemo were not. I'm not deeming the latter two movies are adult, but they do contain content kids wont really understand. Some of the content the kids will understand, but it will be disturbing.

The Lion King is the major movie I want to talk about. This movie has everything going for it. Great storyline, catchy and wonderfully written music, great actors, and good morals. Unfortunately, some of us may not remember some of the other content in the movie.

Disney does a good job to make any adult oriented content pretty subtle. Like in Big Hero 6 when Baymax begins to talk about puberty and the growth and distribution of hair. Young ones wont get it and they wont have to. Some of the content of The Lion King both good and bad is a lot more easier to grasp. Yes, even for a little one.

The biggest thing in the Lion King is the thematic elements. Mainly, Mufasa's death. That's skirting into PG territory. You could also include the final battle scene and Scar's death. While the battle scene is pushing the G rating Scar's death (though shown only in the shadows for a few seconds), is very disturbing. Most kids will know what's going on when they see the two deaths in the movie.

"... In the jungle, the mighty jungle."

Did Simba and Nala mate? Though not shown this is definitely not G rated territory. At first they're just playing around. Even the kids will giggle, the teens may laugh. Then they roll over each other and lick each other. In my mind they did mate. That's just my opinion. No mating was shown in any of The lion King trilogy.

The famous "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" scene is G-rated most of the time until the end. When I rewatched the movie when I was fourteen I began to understand more of what was going on between Nala and Simba. As a 5 year old kid I had no idea what was going on. Except maybe that they were kissing.

My evidence is that Simba and Nala have a cub at the end of the first Lion King movie. Even further proof is that the cub is growing up throughout the next two films.

The lion King is a great movie. I love it! But, its not G-rated. I'd definitely stamp the PG rating on it for the deaths of Mufasa and Scar. I would also give it that rating based on Simba and Nala's scene together. This is my opinion for The Lion King. I still think its a great movie, just that maybe parents should think about waiting a till their kid at least somewhat understands the elements of death.

Also, waiting to see The Lion King or rewatching it when you're older brings up very good discussion points. Parents can talk about the death of Mufasa and the web of lies Scar spreads. Overall, The Lion King is a totally positive movie about getting over grief and believing in yourself. Its just definitely not G-rated.

Thanks for Reading! I will try to release more articles as soon as I can!

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